Atwood is the author of more than 40 books of fiction, poetry, and critical essays. Her novels include The Blind Assassin, winner of the Booker Prize; Alias Grace, which won the Giller Prize in Canada and the Premio Mondello in Italy; The Robber Bride; Cat’s Eye; and most recently, Hag-Seed, a modern retelling of Shakespeare’s The Tempest. She was recently named to Time magazine’s 2017 list of the 100 Most Influential People.

One of Atwood’s best-known works is The Handmaid’s Tale, the story of a totalitarian society in which women are enslaved to bear children for the country’s leaders and their barren wives. It has been adapted into a television series (in which Atwood has a cameo) that premiered on Hulu April 26. Highly anticipated, the series opened to editorials and reviews from media such as the New York Times, the New Yorker, the Hollywood Reporter, and The Guardian that emphasize the relevance of Atwood’s cautionary tale today, more than 30 years after the book’s release. Atwood herself wrote an op-ed for the New York Times titled “What The Handmaid’s Tale Means in the Age of Trump.”

In 2016, Atwood’s first graphic novel, Angel Catbird, debuted to high praise; the second in the three-volume series was published in February, and the third will be released in July. Her MaddAddam trilogy—comprising the Giller and Booker prize-nominated Oryx and Crake, The Year of the Flood, and MaddAddam—is in development as a TV series with Black Swan director Darren Aronofsky.

The Distinguished Thinkers event will begin at 6 pm in the Diana Chapman Walsh Alumnae Hall Auditorium. Tickets are free, but must be reserved in advance.